Bush administration responds to Cobell $58B claim

Friday, April 11, 2008

The Bush administration on Wednesday filed its response brief in the Cobell Indian trust fund case, calling the claim for $58 billion "unsound" and "absurd."

The Department of Justice said the Cobell plaintiffs should drop their case if they no longer want an historical accounting of the Individual Indian Money (IIM) trust.
Government attorneys also said the judge handling the case doesn't have authority to restore any sort of money to the trust accounts.

In January, Judge James Robertson ruled that the accounting was "impossible." He plans to hold a trial, starting June 9, to address a remedy for the plaintiffs.